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The projected 14% increase in spending on cyber security in 2024 is expected to have a positive affect on the 10 constituents in the munKNEE Cybersecurity Software Stocks Index, which was up 105.9% in 2023 and that seems to be unfolding so far in 2024 up 18% YTD.

Below is how each constituent performed this week, in descending order, and YTD, plus any recent news, commentary, and/or analysis on each company.

1. CyberArk Software (CYBR): up 18.5% this week; up 23.4% YTD
   • enables secure access for any identity to any resource - protecting identities and critical assets by enabling Zero Trust and enforcing least privilege.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • CyberArk Soars 8% as Q4 Earnings & Sales Crush Estimates
2. Varonis Systems (VRNS); up 14.4% this week; up 14.8% YTD
   • provides security products that manage network events in real-time to detect any breaches or threats and expanded its support for Microsoft's Office 365 platform in November 2023 by adding new features to protect against malicious emails.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • Varonis Systems Rose on Strong Quarterly Results
3. Palo Alto Networks (PANW): up 9.2% this week; up 27.8% YTD
   • provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware, and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection as well as DNS, Internet of Things, SaaS, API, and SaaS security inline, and threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • Is Palo Alto Networks' Latest Stock Performance A Reflection Of Its Financial Health?
4. Tenable Holdings (TENB): up 8.6% this week; up 12.7% YTD
   • provides organizations with a broad range of cyber security solution platforms.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • Tenable Dazzles As Earnings More Than Double
5. CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD): up 8.5% this week; up 29.0% YTD
   • is focused on cloud-native solutions and AI-driven threat detection and a leader in endpoint security.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • CRWD Stock Flashes This Aggressive Entry Amid Unrelenting Lockout Rally
6. SentinelOne (S): up 7.8% this week; up 8.2% YTD
   • is a global leader in AI security using its Singularity™ Platform to detect, prevent, and respond to cyber attacks enabling organizations to secure endpoints, cloud workloads, containers, identities, and mobile and network-connected devices with speed, accuracy, and simplicity.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • SentinelOne Rose on Multiple Reasons
7. Fortinet (FTNT): up 6.0% this week; up 20.3% YTD
   • provides a wide range of cybersecurity and networking solutions
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • Fortinet Hits Buy Point As Q4 Results Break This Awful Streak
8. Zscaler (ZS): up 4.5% this week; up 15.1% YTD
   • is a cloud security company that prevents cyberthreats and data loss while providing users with fast, reliable zero trust connectivity to apps from anywhere.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • Zscaler Soars to 52-Week High, Time to Cash Out?
9. CyberArk Software (CYBR): up 1.4% this week; up 7.5% YTD
   • enables secure access for any identity to any resource - protecting identities and critical assets by enabling Zero Trust and enforcing least privilege.
   • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
     • CyberArk Soars 8% as Q4 Earnings & Sales Crush Estimates
10. Qualys (QLYS): down 8.5% this week; down 12.4% YTD
    • offers a complete set of cybersecurity products for small businesses that use Amazon.com's  Amazon Web Services (AWS) platform.
    • Latest News, Commentary, and/or Analysis:
      • Qualys Just Recorded A 6.8% EPS Beat: Here's What Analysts Are Forecasting Next

Conclusion

The munKNEE Cybersecurity Software Stocks Index is up 6.9% this week and is now already up 17.7% YTD.

Cybersecurity ETF

Investing in a basket of cyber security stocks is a quick and easy way to get investment portfolio exposure to this critical segment of the tech sector. The Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG), for example, consists of 31 stocks, has an expense ratio of 0.51% and was up 17.5% this week and is now up 7.9% YTD.

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